Small, economical containers are used in large volume for the storage, transportation, and dispensing of food products. A commonly utilized container is the pressurized spray can. Generally, an automatic filling system receives a succession of empty cans by some conveying means for filling products. The automatic filling system has a food filling nozzle and/or manifold that fills the spray cans with food. The automatic filling system may also utilize a gassing nozzle and/or manifold to insert propellant into the food filled spray cans to pressurize the cans. Whipped cream, spray oil, and processed cheese may be stored and dispensed utilizing pressurized cans. It is necessary to thoroughly clean the hoses, pipes, and other parts of the gassing manifold's product and propellant delivery system to disinfect food contact surfaces to prevent the growth of potentially harmful microorganisms.
In order to clean the gassing manifold of an automatic filling system, it is necessary to disassemble substantial portions of the gassing manifold prior to cleaning. This disassembly may be time consuming and labor intensive. Furthermore, hard to reach surfaces of the manifold could be missed during cleaning.